Well this morning was fun!
Put 250 rounds down it at the range this morning so can now update here with some more comments.
Firstly, I am not going to discuss accuracy, I have not yet got my "eye" in with the sights so can't give it my all. Initial views show two-handed that you can get a 3 inch group at 25 metres quite easily. Single-handed even tighter, but I'll update this after my next day at the range.
The things I'll cover today:- Ease of Use, Magazines, Trigger and Reliability/Build.
Ease of Use
The balance of the pistol with the counterweight is beautiful for fun shooting, when compared against the lightweight version of the Buckmark at the range, weight wise the 1911 is slightly heavier but not by much. Looks wise, everyone agreed the Buckmark was beaten hands down.
Whilst the controls have been set up for right handed people, thanks to this being a pistol they are fine for use by a lefty with the slide release and mag release well within easy reach! The only fiddly bit is trying to manually lock the slide open when arriving at the range to prove clear.etc. However, its far easier to pop an empty mag in and pull the slide back and then remove the mag, the auto hold locks it back automatically
Recoil, boy does this thing kick , I like! Also worth a mention, due to the design and shorter barrel, ammunition is much noisier than out of a rifle! CCI Standard sounded like Mini-Mag!
Magazines
These really are great, with a follower bolt allowing you to very easily and quickly load 10 rounds in a mag. On ejection, they quite litterally fall out into your hand. I have noticed the blueing has rubbed off in some places on the mags already from friction, I would therefore recommend coating them in a thin film of oil to help prevent wear.
The slide also locks back on last round allowing for a very quick mag change.... practical shooters take note!
As mentioned in another thread, putting a magazine in the gun can be a little tricky, as it has to be pushed home against the safety spring between the prongs of the counter weight, this would be much easier with an extension such as the Pachmayr rubber endings on which, would allow you to "slap" the mag in. My next upgrade I think!
Trigger
Can't fault it, the pull is quite light and the let off is very sharp, its good fun trying to see how fast you can double tap... on target fighting the recoil! The trigger will not operate under any circumstances without the slide forward and a magazine loaded.
Reliability/Build Quality
My only concern on the build side in the blueing, it isn't very deep and of air arms(ish) quality. A bit of care with a bit of oil and tlc will be needed to keep her in top condition.
Reliability wise, out of 250 rounds I had one combined Failure to Feed/Fire which the pistol had a job ejecting, the round was quite tight in the chamber and fired on second attempt... so I put that one down to the ammo. Otherwise, I had one other Failure to Feed where the round being fed from the mag sprang upwards and was rammed into the edge of the breach at 45 degrees! I was using CCI Standard. Apart from these two rounds she was flawless.
Am I happy? YES!
Would I buy one of these in a heartbeat? YES!
I hope thats of interest and I hope to add an accuracy update soon!
Andy